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4/19/08
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Obama, Clinton strike homestretch in bid for nomination
WASHINGTON - Finally for the Democrats, the homestretch.
The World
GIs in Sadr City caught between warring Iraqi sides
BAGHDAD — Three
weeks after U.S. troops were ordered into the sprawling Shiite Muslim slum of
Sadr City to stop rockets from raining down on the U.S. Embassy compound in
Baghdad's Green Zone, they're caught in crossfire between Shiite militiamen and
the mostly Shiite Iraqi army.
Anti-US cleric al-Sadr threatens new uprising in Iraq
BAGHDAD -
Anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr gave a "final warning" to the
government Saturday to halt a U.S.-Iraqi crackdown against his followers or he
would declare "open war until liberation."
Israel at 60: A vibrant nation still in search of itself
JERUSALEM - The
story of Israel at 60 is the tale of a little town named Sderot whose children
play indoors because of Palestinian rockets, of a world-class tech industry that
pioneered Wi-Fi and instant messaging, of a nation filled with pride and fierce
patriotism, yet living in fear of annihilation from abroad and of a demographic
time bomb at home.
Hamas suicide bombers attack Israel-Gaza crossing; 13 hurt
JERUSALEM - Hamas
bombers attacked an Israeli-Gaza border crossing under the cover of fog
Saturday, detonating two jeeps made to look like Israeli military vehicles and
packed with hundreds of pounds of explosives.
Turkish court threatens to oust government that lifted head scarf ban
ANKARA, Turkey —
Recep Tayyip Erdogan is no stranger to political persecution. He was sent to
prison and barred from politics temporarily a decade ago for championing his
Islamic beliefs.
Anti-French protests erupt across China
BEIJING (AFP) -
Hundreds of Chinese protested Saturday in Beijing and several other big cities
against France
over its attitude towards Tibet and the Olympic Games, according to police and
witnesses.
Australians seek better future with summit of ideas
ADELAIDE, Australia
- Nearly 1,000 delegates on Saturday began brainstorming ideas for the country's
future, tackling everything from discrimination against Aborigines to whether
Australia should cut its ties to the British monarchy.
Colombian vice president blasts Americans on trade deal
WASHINGTON — An
irate Colombian Vice President Francisco Santos set aside diplomatic niceties
Friday and lashed out at U.S. opponents of a free-trade pact with Colombia,
accusing them of distorting his country's record on violence.
After 61 years in power, Paraguay's ruling party faces defeat
ASUNCION, Paraguay —
For 61 years, the Colorado Party's recipe for holding on to power in this
impoverished country has never failed.
Changing Cuba: Monster buses vanish from Havana streets
HAVANA - First comes
the stink of diesel, then a metallic roar, and finally a tower of black smoke
that tells you the "camello" — the camel — has reached your stop.
In hungry Haiti, handouts only go so far
PORT-AU-PRINCE,
Haiti - Hundreds of Haitians stood in long lines Saturday, just as others had
walked for hours throughout the week to receive the U.N. and regional food aid
pouring into the country after a spate of deadly riots.
Zimbabwe holds partial recount of March 29 vote
HARARE (Reuters) -
Zimbabwe began a partial recount of votes from the March 29 elections on
Saturday, despite opposition efforts to block it and widespread fears that
political stalemate could erupt into violence.
Food riots overshadow southern African poverty conference
PORT-LOUIS (AFP) -
Southern African leaders were expected in Mauritius later Saturday ahead of a
regional summit on poverty expected to be dominated by recent riots and unrest
sparked by price hikes for basic goods.
Eritrea says U.N. border force not legal
ASMARA (Reuters) -
Eritrea's President Isaias Afwerki has said the continued presence of U.N.
peacekeepers in the Red Sea state's border with arch-foe Ethiopia was illegal,
government media reported on Saturday.
U.N. moves 5,400 Darfuri refugees to Chad camps
KHARTOUM (Reuters) -
The United Nations has moved 5,400 Darfuris who fled a government offensive in
February to refugee camps in eastern
Chad,
but 8,000 others remain scattered in the area, the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR)
said on Saturday.
The Nation
US not scaling back demands on North Korea: Bush
CAMP DAVID, Maryland
(AFP) - US President George W. Bush Saturday disputed suggestions that he was
scaling back demands on North Korea over its nuclear program and said he would
not accept a deal that goes against the region's interests.
Auditors: Administration overstepped on child health program
WASHINGTON - The Bush administration overreached last year when it
limited states' ability to extend health coverage to moderate-income children,
government auditors said in a letter released Friday.
Bush names former pest-control exec as housing secretary
WASHINGTON —
President Bush's nomination Friday of Steve Preston to head the Department of
Housing and Urban Development came under fire for the nominee's lack of housing
experience amid the worst national housing downturn in memory.
Bush has nothing
but contempt for us.
Bush asks Congress to reconsider Colombia trade deal
WASHINGTON - President Bush, ahead of his trip next week to a summit
with North American leaders, said Saturday that the House's decision to block a
vote on a Colombia
free trade agreement was a "serious error" and urged Congress to reconsider.
Democrats are changing U.S. policy in Latin America
WASHINGTON — An
empowered Democratic Party has taken command of U.S. policy toward Latin
America, stalling a free-trade agreement and taking aim at military aid programs
for Colombia and Mexico.
Analysis: Congressional climate is tough for farm bill
WASHINGTON -
It's not a good year for a farm bill.
Report: NYC Freedom Tower plans found in trash
NEW YORK - The government agency building a 102-story skyscraper at
the World Trade Center
site is investigating the discovery of two sets of blueprints for the building
that a homeless man says he found in the trash.
It's still "the economy, stupid" in Pennsylvania
PITTSBURGH (Reuters)
- In 1992, Bill Clinton used the phrase "it's the economy, stupid" to win the
White House amid a recession. Sixteen years later, his wife Hillary Clinton and
Barack Obama are fighting for the Democratic presidential nomination by
promising relief from more hard times.
Dean: McCain's economic plan 'more of the same'
WASHINGTON - John
McCain doesn't have an effective plan to turn around the faltering U.S. economy,
Democratic Party chairman Howard Dean said Saturday.
Economy & Finance
Wall Street jumps as investors weigh Citi, Google results
NEW YORK - Wall Street topped off a strong week with a big rally
Friday, after results from companies like Citigroup Inc. and Google Inc. helped
ease investor anxiety about the health of corporate profits.
Dollar's plunge becoming lynchpin in 1Q earnings
NEW YORK - The dollar's plunge might be preventing Americans from
taking that European vacation this summer, but it could be the very thing saving
their 401(k)s from buckling.
Bush says U.S. has acted to boost economy
WASHINGTON (Reuters)
- The U.S. government has already taken "very effective" action to help boost
the slumping U.S. economy, President George W. Bush said on Friday in a speech
to a U.S. business group.
U.S. economic slowdown likely to bring Mexican workers north
TEZIUTLAN, Mexico —
As the U.S. economy heads south, Mexicans may have to head north.
Gas prices push closer to $3.50 a gallon, oil hits $117
NEW YORK - Retail gas prices set new records Friday on their
seemingly relentless march toward $3.50 a gallon, and diesel prices pushed
further above $4 a gallon. Crude futures, meanwhile, surged to a new record of
$117 a barrel.
Report: Iran's president says oil prices too low
TEHRAN, Iran -
Iran's hard-line president declared that crude oil prices, now above $115 a
barrel, are too low, state media reported Saturday.
Housing-credit woes spur calls for more federal regulation
WASHINGTON - A heavier federal hand is reaching into American life as
politicians in both parties demand an overhaul of government financial
regulation and more protection for homeowners in the face of mortgage woes and a
weakening economy.
Media
Permanent link to MTA daily media news
Obama Flips off Hillary
(video)
Different locale, same speech, same gesture, same crowd reaction. Don’t
tell me he didn’t mean it. Fox News is
reporting it..—Caro
Can we say "imaginary hip black friend" now? Since the Boiz just did?
(by lambert at Corrente)
Of Barry’s latest awsum speech, full of “pretty cool” “dogwhistles” — one of
which was giving Hillary the finger — Spencer burbles: “Starting at
2:20, bear witness to
perhaps the coolest subliminal cultural reference [to this extremely
presidential Jay Z tune] in the history of American politics.” I’ll just quote
one comment, from reader weakervessel, who I think deserves a Unity Pony if
anyone does: “Dude, I nearly swooned — SWOONED, I tell you — when I saw that.
That’s one of my fave Jay-Z joints of all time. HUGE SWIRLING VORTEX OF LOVE. I
could not pink-fuzzy-heart Barack one iota more.”… Great. Just what I want from
a President.
The ..|.. Finger of Hope, Change and Unity
(by eriposte at the Left Coaster)
[A]fter Sen. Obama performed underwhelmingly in the ABC debate…, some of [his]
supporters have taken to rending their garments about Sen. Clinton using
Republican style talking-points against Sen. Obama… [Being troubled] by his
opponent for behaviors that have long been the defining characteristic of his
own campaign is pretty silly.
[Examples:] 1. Attacks on
President Clinton's sex life (a longtime staple of Republican politics and the
corporate media) and attempts to tie that to Sen. Clinton's electability… 2.
Attacks on Sen. Clinton for the crookedness of a fundraiser (who also happened
to be Sen. Obama's fundraiser)… 3. Caricaturing and Attacking Sen. Clinton using
the standard right-wing attack memes: Her "Negatives", "Divisiveness", Alleged
Inability to Work with Republicans… 4. Attacks on Sen. Clinton Using False or
Unsubstantiated Stories from Right Wing Fraudsters Matt Drudge and Robert Novak…
5. Borderline Racist Attack Against Sen. Clinton… 6. Borderline Sexist Attacks
Against Sen. Clinton.
Click through for more. Personally, I’d go beyond “borderline” on the
racist and sexist attacks. They’ve been covert, but they’ve been full blown.
The Courage Campaign's attack on reality.
(by John: south of Melrose at Liberal Rapture)
I have been saying for a while now that Obama has unleashed a dangerous cult on
the American scene. I mean it. There is a true darkness behind the Obama
Phenomenon. A darkness born of a deep pain and disconnect in the American
psyche. Obama has exploited this pain to create what can only be called a mob.
It is akin to the collective mob mentality we often see on the Right - but it is
more dangerous. The Right comes together and attacks when it believes its world
view is being threatened. It is often scary and ridiculous but it is based in
beliefs - however misguided many of us think those beliefs are. Obama's mob has
no such underpinnings. It is purely a personality cult manipulated and directed
from the top. When he needed them Bush used encoded words to coach his gang in
the electorate. Obama throws the bird and insists he did not. But any fool can
see it. Obama smiles and talks "hope" then launches into character
assassination. His minions lap it up. There is a collective insanity going on in
our midst.
Hillary Clinton: No Wimps in the White House (Political Radar, ABC
News)
Stepping up her criticism of her rival's performance in ABC News' primetime
debate on Wednesday, Clinton, D-N.Y., told the FOX affiliate in Philadelphia, "I
know he spent all day yesterday complaining about the hard questions he was
asked. Being asked tough questions in a debate is nothing like the pressures you
face inside the White House. In fact, when the going gets tough, you just can't
walk away because we're going to have some very tough decisions that we have to
make."
Please note that Hillary Clinton didn’t use the word “wimp”, ABC News did.
Obama's secret weapon: the media
(by John Harris and Jim VandeHei at Politico)
The shower of indignation on Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos over the
last few days is the clearest evidence yet that the Clintonites are
fundamentally correct in their complaint that she has been flying throughout
this campaign into a headwind of media favoritism for Obama. Last fall, when
NBC’s Tim Russert hazed Clinton with a bunch of similar questions—a mix of fair
and impertinent—he got lots of gripes from Clinton supporters. But there was
nothing like the piling on from journalists rushing to validate the Obama
criticisms and denouncing ABC’s performance as journalistically unsound.
Obama, get ready for the "Clinton rules"
(by Joe Conason, Salon)
As Wednesday's awful debate proves, it won't matter who the presidential nominee
is -- the press will play footsie with McCain and attack the Democrat.
"Ladies is pimps too, go and brush your shoulders off"
(by lambert at Corrente)
Obama planning to buy PA’s vote: Obama hopes to deliver a knock-out blow by
outspending her in advertising. With tens of millions from fundraising at his
disposal, he plans to spend well over $2m (£1m) on ads in the run-up to the
primary, at least twice as much as the cash-strapped Clinton campaign. In
Philadelphia, which could determine the outcome, he reserved for the final days
$465,000 worth of television and radio spots, while
Clinton
reserved $91,000 worth. Obama’s strategy, which he has deployed time and again
during his political career, is that the more money spent on advertising, the
higher the odds of winning an election.
Money can’t buy him love
(by riverdaughter at The Confluence)
Well, massive infusions of cash for TV ads didn’t help him in CA, NY, NJ, MA,
AZ, OH, TX, FL (oops, naughty, naughty, Barry) but that doesn’t mean that he’s
not going to try to buy PA. Hillary can out debate him, out qualify him, out
tough him, but so far she has been unable to outspend him. Hey, maybe she
doesn’t need to but why take any risks? If you have a few bucks,
send it her way and help her keep up with Obama’s planned saturation
coverage for the weekend.
Newsmax/Zogby Poll: Clinton Surges Ahead in Pa.
UTICA, New York –
New York Democrat Hillary Clinton had a good day in the Newsmax/Zogby daily
tracking poll ahead of Tuesday’s Pennsylvania primary, following a strong debate
performance in Philadelphia Wednesday night, and now holds a 47% to 43%
advantage over Barack Obama of Illinois.
Okay, Newsmax is right wing. But John Zogby is in the bag for Obama.
Which is very interesting, since John’s brother James is the head of the Arab
American Institute.
Dean Urges Superdelegates to Commit
Howard Dean asked
uncommitted superdelegates to commit soon to avoid dragging out the nominating
process all the way to the party convention.
Obama's and the DNC 's BAD Behavior
(Obama Who)
This is the man who had the 50 state strategies? The man who is perfectly
willing to let
Florida and Michigan
stand on the outside of picking the candidate? So, the primaries are not over
with yet, he wants all the superdelegates to commit now and then to hell with
the rest of the voters? Look, everyone knows Obama went down in flames
[Wednesday] night but it appears that Howard Dean is doing the same thing now as
he did to Michigan and Florida, making the rest of the votes not count.
Click here to tell the DNC what you think. They’d better be thinking about
the Electoral College. See below.
Electoral-Vote.com, April 19
Electoral Votes (270 needed to win):
Clinton v. McCain - Clinton 289 McCain 239 Ties 10
Obama v. McCain - Obama 260 McCain 254 Ties 24
Click through to see the maps.
"She's not as bad as you think"
(by Walter Shapiro, Salon)
When a male supporter in the audience at Haverford College asked for advice
about how to persuade undecided voters as he canvassed his neighborhood,
[Hillary] Clinton cracked, "Knock on the door and say, 'She's really nice.' Or
you can say, 'She's not as bad as you think.'"… Hillary Clinton still boasts
the three ingredients that an underdog candidate needs in order to continue in
presidential politics: money for television, loyal local supporters and a large
traveling press corps. She also has something that's perhaps even more important
-- a refusal to take no for an answer in what she called Thursday "a very long
extended job interview that has gone on for 15 months."
And, of course, the reason so many people think she’s “so bad” is that
the right wing has wanted a 16-year multi-hundred million dollar campaign
against her. I thought that’s what all of us so-called progressives were
fighting against. But it turns out that some are fighting only when THEIR
candidate gets tough, or even unfair, coverage.
Clinton Gets 3 New Superdelegates
(The Caucus, New York Times)
Hillary Rodham Clinton added a new trio of superdelegates to her tally on
Friday. Two former
New Jersey governors,
Jim Florio and Brendan Byrne, endorsed Mrs. Clinton last year, but they were
only selected to be their state's add-on delegates Thursday. As such, they have
the same voting rights as superdelegates and don't have to vote with the popular
vote winner of their state (although Mrs. Clinton won New Jersey anyway).
Clinton Slams Democratic Activists At Private Fundraiser
(by Celeste Fremon at The Huffington Post)
At a small closed-door fundraiser after Super Tuesday, Sen. Hillary Clinton
blamed what she called the "activist base" of the Democratic Party -- and
MoveOn.org in particular -- for many of her electoral defeats, saying activists
had "flooded" state caucuses and "intimidated" her supporters, according to an
audio recording of the event obtained by The Huffington Post… Howard Wolfson,
communications director for the Clinton campaign, verified the authenticity of
the audio, and elaborated on Clinton's charge that these same party activists
were engaged in acts of intimidation against her supporters: "There have been
well documented instances of intimidation in the Nevada and the Texas
caucuses."… In fact, the Nevada caucuses occurred prior to MoveOn's endorsement
of Obama, and when Clinton made her remarks, the Texas caucuses had yet to take
place.
There was intimidation, whether or not it was from MoveOn activists.
I’ve heard some of the accounts myself.
"Off the Bus" goes "Off the Rails"
(by Paul Lukasiak at Corrente)
“Off the Bus” is a joint venture by Jay (Pressthink) Rosen and Ariana Huffington
that encourages “citizen’s journalism.” The idea is that us “little people” can
attend campaign events, and report them, just as well as the corporate media.
Recently, Off the Bus made news when an Obama supporter, Mayhill Fowler,
reported on remarks made by Obama at a San Francisco fundraiser — the
“bitter/clinging” controversy. Rosen addressed the controversy over at
Pressthink, explaining the care and attention given to Fowler’s piece. Then
[Friday], Off the Bush published a hit piece on Clinton, based on a two month
old recording. Off the Bus apparently has two different standards — one for
Obama, and another for
Clinton…
Consider the contrasts
FOWLER was an Obama Supporter, doing an “insider critque” of the context in
which Obama had said something.
FREMON is a self-loathing Clinton-hater…, who is slamming Clinton from ’outside’
the Clinton camp, and is writing not about the context, but about what was said,
in an accusatory manner.
FOWLER WAS THERE. There is nothing that suggests that FREMON was at the CLinton
fundraiser.
FOWLER wrote about contemporaneous events, FREMON writes about a two month old
tape recording.
FOWLER’s piece was accompanied by an audio link that included the full context
(in context, Obama comes off as tone-deaf, rather than “elitist”) of Obama’s
remarks, and a full transcript of those remarks. FREMON provides only a short
clip, which sounds like it has been edited in order for maximum attack value.
Click through for more.
No good deed goes unpunished
(by lambert at Corrente)
Back in 2007: “The Senate voted on Thursday to repudiate an ad from MoveOn.org
that referred to Gen. David Petraeus as ‘General Betray Us.’ Democratic
presidential front-runner Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) opposed the
measure, while her closest competitor, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), missed the
vote.” Barry? Not present? You’re kidding! Meanwhile, Hillary votes just the way
the “progressive” should have, back in the day before the term got hijacked by
goateed Village misogynists, and with some courage, given the vote was 72-25.
Obama once visited '60s radicals
(by Ben Smith, Politico)
In 1995, State Senator Alice Palmer introduced her chosen successor, Barack
Obama, to a few of the district’s influential liberals at the home of two well
known figures on the local left: William Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn. While Ayers
and Dohrn may be thought of in Hyde Park as local activists, they’re better
known nationally as two of the most notorious — and unrepentant — figures from
the violent fringe of the 1960s anti-war movement… “Ayers was a terrorist.
Bernardine Dohrn was a terrorist. Ayers has never offered one word of apology —
he glories in it, thinks it’s terrific. And that to me is not what I would call
acceptable or mainstream behavior,” said Dan Polsby, a former law professor at
Northwestern who is now dean of George Mason University Law School. “If Obama
takes a different view on that — well, OK, that’s data about Obama.”
Once visited. Uh huh. Once that we KNOW of. Don’t forget that Obama
and Ayers together
served on the board of an organization that provided funds for Palestinians.
And let’s never forget that when Alice Palmer changed her mind about giving up
her state senate seat, instead of bowing out of the race, Obama ruthlessly
had her name removed from the ballot by challenging her petition signatures.
Obama supporters say that she (and the other candidates—he bumped them all off)
had fake signatures, but we don't really know that. It's cheap to challenge and
expensive to prove the challenged voters are legitimate, so we just don't know.
The Chicago Three: Obama, Ayers & Rezko
(by Bud White at No Quarter)
Overview: This is a story of big-city behind-the-scenes politics — of
scratch-my-back and I’ll-scratch-yours backroom dealings.
It is a story of how Bill
Ayers and Barack Obama — sitting on a charitable board (for which they were
paid) — aided and abetted the lucrative real estate development projects of
Obama’s former law firm associate Allison Davis and Davis’s development partner
Antoin “Tony” Rezko. The Woods board on which Ayers and Obama sat ended up
giving those two development partners the sum of one million dollars, from which
both Davis and Rezko reaped considerable financial gain. And Obama did not
recuse himself from the board’s vote on this large real estate transaction
despite a clear conflict of interest from his past associations. Obama then
became the beneficiary of large — very large — campaign contributions from Rezko
and many of his wealthy associates. It all worked out very well for Sen. Obama.
Obama endorsed by former senators Nunn & Boren; Reich does so as well
(On Politics, USA Today)
Two former senators with long records on foreign policy and national security
issues -- and who come from "red" states where Republicans dominate -- have just
endorsed Sen. Barack Obama's bid for the White House. Sam Nunn of Georgia and
David Boren of Oklahoma, both Democrats (as is Obama), will also be serving as
advisers on Obama's national security foreign policy team… [O]ne-time "friend of
Bill" and former Clinton administration Labor secretary Robert Reich.. Reich
makes it official: … "I believe that Barack Obama should be elected President of
the United States. Although Hillary Clinton has offered solid and sensible
policy proposals, Obama's strike me as even more so."
Nonsense. Famed economist Paul Krugman says Clinton’s plan is the one
with the solid and sensible policy proposals. Reich is getting something out of
this, trust me.
Nunn-Boren “Unity” Rears its Ugly Head on Behalf of Obama
(by GRL at InsightAnalytical -- Watching Our World)
So, former Senators Sam Nunn and David Boren endorsed Obama today. It seemed
like a convenient thing to do in light of Obama’s recent juvenile activities
involving fingers. Both will now advise on national security… Of course, Nunn
and Boren are the the epitome of what Obamaphiles looking for “change” are
thirsting for! Let’s see, Nunn’s record in the Senate includes: being a member
of the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC); voting NO on deducting Social
Security payments from income taxes; voting YES on prohibiting same-sex
marriage; voting Yes on limiting death penalty appeals; voting YES on limiting
product liability punitive damage awards; voting YES on abstinence education
funding; and an unknown stance on abortion rights. Boren’s record is even more
conservative. And scary, especially with regard to foreign policy.
The Capital Gains Tax: It’s Even Better Than You Think
(by Dean Baker)
At [Wednesday] night’s Democratic debate, ABC’s co-anchor Charlie Gibson was
intent on arguing with the Senators Clinton and Obama that a capital gains tax
cut raises revenue. As others have pointed out, the evidence that a capital
gains tax cut raises revenue is rather dubious, since most of the apparent
increase is likely due to timing: investors delay selling stock when they know a
tax cut is imminent. After the cut takes effect, they then declare their gains
and pay taxes at the lower rate. But this is only part of the story. As
President Reagan noted when he signed the 1986 tax reform, taxing capital gains
at a lower rate than other income gives people enormous incentive to game the
tax code.
It’s pretty likely that the only people in the room who might have to
worry about a capital gains tax on the kind of income the candidates are talking
about imposing it on were the candidates and the two members of the media asking
the questions.
McCain releases tax returns but leaves out rich wife's data
WASHINGTON
— Republican presidential candidate John McCain released his two most recent tax
returns Friday, but they don't provide a full picture of his wealth because they
don't include his wife's income.
McCain campaign changes its ‘definition’ of earmarks.
(Think Progress)
As ThinkProgress has previously noted, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) campaign
promise to “veto every bill that has a pork-barrel project on it” if elected
president would result in $65 billion of cuts to programs, including U.S.
funding assistance to Israel and funding for military housing. Now, McCain’s top
economic adviser, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, says that McCain is changing the
definition of earmarks. Under the new definition, “there are between $16 billion
and $18 billion” of earmarks in the current budget. Holtz-Eakin “declined to say
whether McCain would ever begin to name programs he’ll cut.”
McCain "Family Recipes" Lifted from the Food Network
It took less than
12 hours from the time the media caught wind of Cindy McCain's recipe theft for
John McCain's campaign website to scrub away the offending pages. That's 12
hours more than it took Cindy to come up with the recipes... It also turns out
that Mrs. McCain submitted "her" Passion Fruit Mousse recipe to the New York Sun
for an article that ran on January 16th. Just like on the McCain campaign site,
there is no sourcing other than McCain herself.
The Google economy
(by Jeff Jarvis)
I think there’s something more fundamental happening in Google’s rousing
quarterly report yesterday than we’re seeing in the news reports about it (which
are mostly eating crow over predictions to the contrary). I think we’re seeing a
new definition of “the economy.” The old definition meant and measured the
performance of big companies and their impact on each other. This was especially
the case in media and advertising, which served only companies of a certain size
because only large companies could afford to advertise in large outlets. But
Google’s marketplace for advertisers of all sizes represents the
small-is-the-new-big economy: no limit of small enterprises that can now add up
to a critical mass. The fact that it is an auction marketplace also means that
this economy is more fluid; it fills in voids.
Click through to read Jeff’s most interesting explanation for this
assertion.
Fear of Falling
(Public Opinion, Center for American Progress)
The public believes that over the last five years it has become harder for
middle class families to maintain their standard of living.
Media Matters for America headlines
Gibson's capital-gains tax assertion during debate disputed by economists
CNN still promoting the notion that progressives don't vote their values and aren't "pro-family"
Rove falsely claimed that Obama suggested: "If you wear a flag lapel pin, you're not a true patriot"
Revealed: The Cartoonishly Racist Faked Memoir That Duped the NY Times
(by John Gorenfeld, AlterNet)
Love and Consequences was quickly yanked off the shelves after it was revealed
to be a fake, but we got our hands on a copy.
Think twice before taking pictures in public
Thanks to digital
cameras and camera phones, photography is experiencing a renaissance. Many
people carry a camera everywhere they go. But before you start snapping, ask
yourself a question: Is it legal to take a photograph in this situation?
Media Hoaxed: Yale Debunks Student's Artwork Purporting to Show Abortion
A Yale University art student's claim that she induced repeated abortions on
herself and used the blood for her senior project is false, school officials
said after her account was published in the student newspaper -- and picked up
widely by the media.
More editors are working with publishers to bring in ad bucks
Like it or not,
the newspaper industry's increasingly grim financial outlook leaves editors with
little choice but to work across the aisle, writes Louis Hau. Before state high
school sports tournaments get under way, the Des Moines Register's sports editor
confers with advertising to determine what they can do together. "Five years
ago, it wouldn't have happened," says Register editor Carolyn Washburn.
Zell to creditors: We'll be able to meet our commitments
Sam Zell tells
Tribune creditors that "from where we sit right now, it doesn't appear that we
will have trouble meeting our commitments going forward." Asked about Newsday,
the Tribune CEO says only that "when we originally entered into [the buyout] our
goal was to keep everything together," but the subsequent erosion in revenue
"has certainly put that plan into question."
Katie wants out - and now we know why
(by Michael Star, New York Post)
April 18, 2008 -- KATIE Couric's well-docu mented doubts about staying much
longer as "CBS Evening News" anchor are apparently tied to more bad ratings
news. The ratings slide that began when she started 19 months ago is getting
worse. Couric is down 10 percent year-to-date.
CW Yanks "Gossip Girl" Web Streams
This could go
down as the most bone-headed move from a TV network in 2008, or completely
inconsequential: The CW network is pulling off its website the one show that is
at least keeping it in the news.
Charles Darwin's Papers Go Online
The first draft
of a book which changed the world's attitude to evolution is available for the
first time online.
Facebook asks users to translate for free
The
three-year-old social networking phenomenon Facebook, worth more than $15
billion by many estimates, got a good deal on going global. Its users around the
world are translating Facebook's visible framework into nearly two dozen
languages — for free.
Guilty plea in Craigslist assassin case
A Michigan woman
who advertised online for a hitman to kill her lover's wife pleaded guilty to
the murder-for-hire scheme, prosecutors said on Friday.
Texting while driving? Time to unplug
A new grass-roots
movement has tech geeks, Internet addicts, Blackberry thumbers and compulsive
IMers deciding to wrest back control of their lives by daring to switch off —if
only for one day in May.
Amazon.com CEO promotes Kindle reader in shareholder letter
SEATTLE -
Amazon.com Inc.'s Kindle has arrived. Again.
Krugman
seems to like his Kindle.
